Twenty photographers from 16 countries have been invited to capture the essence of Beijing life during the annual Vision 2016: World Photographers Focusing on Beijing, which started on Monday, May 23, 2016.

These photographers, some of whom have attended the event multiple times in the past, will spend the following week capturing what they find to be the beauty and essence of the Chinese capital. There will also be a day when they will form one-on-one pairs with Chinese photographers to capture and compare the photos of the same subject.

Beyhan Ozdemir, a photographer from Turkey, is attending the activity for the fourth time. He said his Beijing-themed photos include shots of a teahouse, restaurants, traditional Beijing drinks and shoe-making.

He said his plans are similar to those of his previous attendances and would include photographing cultural places, modern architecture and Beijing specialties. Although he has attended it more than once, he said that "there are always new things to be found through the lens," implying that there are new changes in Beijing every time he comes.

Since it was established in 1999, the annual gala for international photographers has helped promote the fame of Beijing across the world through the images taken by these visual artists, which more tend to feature different perspectives than those of their Chinese counterparts.

The event's growing popularity attracted this year's sole sponsor, Fun Capital, a developer of shopping districts and amusement parks, since the "mingling of international perspective and Chinese cultural elements" matches the company's pursuit, said Liu Pengfei, assistant to the GM of the company.

Liu praised the photographs captured during previous years' events, acknowledging that sometimes foreign photographers do a better job than Chinese photographers in showcasing Beijing through images. He ascribed the reason to their attention to detail, which is worth admiring and learning from.

Source: china.org.cn